The innate connection between human grief and melancholic music

In this query from a Speaking Tree user, Yoga and Spiritual guru Surakshit Goswami explores the direct and indirect connection between the human psyche and its procilivity towards melancholic music.
Puzzlement: What is it about melancholic tunes that garners such attention?
Resolution: The human psyche is adept at holding onto grief, which may explain the widespread preference for melancholic music.Even though lyrics are penned about both joy and sorrow, the psyche occasionally appreciates the melodies of happiness, yet it is drawn recurrently to the lament in sorrowful songs. In seeking the undercurrents of joy within such songs, the result is often the opposite; these tunes often plunge the listener into profound depths of sadness. This resonance of sorrow is potent especially when a song or poem brimming with grief is crafted; the creator is deeply ensconced in that grief, thereby articulating the essence of sorrow more effectively. As such, a song born of one grieving heart reaches out to another, leading to its acclaim and the accumulation of awards globally, for it echoes the prevailing human sentiment.
The psyche’s bond with joy is somewhat superficial, insincere, and ostentatious. The core recesses of our minds are not brimming with joy but are instead burdened with the sorrows of many lifetimes. While the pursuit of happiness is lifelong, the psyche is inexplicably entwined with sorrow, loss, separation, and heartbreak. Life oscillates between joy and sorrow, but the mind is prone to letting joyous moments slip by while clinging to the sorrowful ones, consequently enveloping itself in the grief of past, present, and future. This preoccupation is why individuals are drawn to acts of violence, theft, murder, deceit, and assault, and find intrigue in news stories about conflict and criticism. Understanding this societal gravitation toward sorrow, the media too often spotlights such narratives.
However, life's essence isn't to be mired in sorrow, but rather to embrace joy. Just as sorrow submerges the deeper levels of the mind, joy saturates the plane of consciousness. Our ancestors, cognizant of this duality, devised methods such as chanting mantras, reciting verses, singing hymns, and meditating, which, when embraced and vocalized, allow an individual to transcend the inherent sorrow and tap into the joy that resides within.